Ullastret (oppidum)
The prehistoric settlement of Ullastret is an Iberian oppidum in northern Catalonia ( Baix Empordà administrative district , Girona province ). It is located about six kilometers northeast of La Bisbal d'Empordà in the Empordà , the fertile hinterland of the Costa Brava .
location
The oppidum is located on a steep hill ( Puig de Sant Andreu ) east of the modern village of Ullastret in the middle of a plain that was covered by a lake until modern times. The landscape in the extreme northeast of Catalonia still bears the name of the nearby Greek city of Empúries (Spanish: Ampurias), the so-called Ampurdán. The rock on which the Iberian oppidum was located is about 10 km as the crow flies from the sea and forms a triangle, the longest branch of which points almost exactly to the north. The extension of the hill is 450 m in length, at the widest point it measures 170 m (about 11 hectares of surface). In the Middle Ages (12th century) a castle was built on its highest point, and there was a farm there until around 1936.
history
After the hill was sporadically visited as early as the Stone Age , the first traces of settlement in the transition from the Bronze Age to the Iron Age can be found on a nearby island ( Illa d'en Reixac ). The earliest pottery there is handmade. Various imported Greek ceramics appear in the course of the 6th century. At this time the "Puig de Sant Andreu" was also settled.
The oppidum reached its greatest heyday in the 4th century BC. Also in this century, the turntable-shaped Iberian ceramics with painting came up from the south. The finds from Ullastret also show a very high proportion of Greek (fine ceramics) and Punic (amphorae).
During the 3rd century BC BC the settlement was gradually abandoned, perhaps due to its proximity to the Greek city of Emporion or due to economic difficulties. Imported ceramics are gradually decreasing. The Romans have most likely already found the place abandoned, there are no traces of violent destruction.
investment
The part of the hill that was not protected by the steep cliff was surrounded with a strong wall, which included seven mostly round towers in the west. Two more towers were located away from the wall on the steep east side. The final expansion of the wall is dated to the 4th century. At the highest point of the settlement there was probably a sanctuary. Many terracottas were found in the prominent square building . The eastern part, where the entrance presumably was, has been destroyed.
A little to the west below these structures were a great many grain silos carved into the rock. On the lower terraces, the residential areas were excavated, divided into insulae by streets and terraces , with many free areas (squares) whose function is not clearly documented. However, one of them is surrounded by a veritable porticus , so that it is referred to as an agora .
Grain silos in the rock
cistern
Excavations in Ullastret
literature
- M. Aurora Martín Ortega: Ullastret. Guide to the excavations and its museum. (English translation: Jaume Gascon Rodà) Diputació Provincial de Girona, Girona 1980.
- Tanja Gouda: The Romanization Process on the Iberian Peninsula from the Perspective of the Iberian Cultures. Kovač, Hamburg 2011, ISBN 978-3-8300-5678-2 , pp. 238–244 ( Antiquitates 54 ).
Web links
- Site of the Archaeological Museum of Catalonia
- Virtual reconstruction of the city, Catalan Heritage Agency (Agència Catalana del Patrimoni Cultural)
Coordinates: 42 ° 0 ′ 21 ″ N , 3 ° 4 ′ 45.6 ″ E